Crush Your Test Anxiety

February 1, 2019

Gr 9 Up-Long-time educator and psychologist Bernstein shares a practical and empowering guide to managing test anxiety. As accurately articulated in the introduction, this book can be of help to teenage test takers, parents, educators, school administrators, and mental health professionals. It offers readers nine practical and realistic tools for coping with what is known as "test stress." These tools can be applied toward taking an array of exams, such as driving tests, the SAT, GRE, and finals. In Chapter One, teens can first identify why they personally dislike taking tests. With this knowledge, they can skip to the topic that will most benefit them. The following chapters address strategies for recognizing and managing anxiety, developing confidence, maintaining focus, and living in the present. Chapter Seven covers how to best prepare for and complete different types of exams. Chapters Nine and Ten offer advice to parents and educators of students plagued with test stress. Bernstein concludes with a resources section that lists an accompanying website and recommended books. While there is a plethora of information, each chapter contains anecdotes, charts, and interactive activities. This volume is unique in that it encourages students, parents, and educators to approach test stress with compassion, while still presenting tangible methods of understanding and coping with it. VERDICT An engaging and informative title that would be a valuable addition to high school and college libraries.-Jess Gafkowitz, Brooklyn Public Library

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